Sloan: A Tour de Force @ Commodore Ballroom -- November 15, 2025

If I’m being honest, I’ve always been a more casual fan of Sloan. Most of their singles are incredible bangers, going back to the 1900s, but I’ve only dipped in and out of their full albums through the years. That said, I did check out the new one, Based on the Best Seller, and when I realised it’s been about 16 years since the last time I saw the Canadian rock legends live, I knew I needed to fix that with the Vancouver stop of ‘A Tour de Force’ at the Commodore Ballroom. 

There was no opening act for the night, as the house lights went down and the screens flanking the stage showed the “Coming Attractions”, fake short trailers for movies based on a few of the songs off the new album, before the “Feature Presentation” as Chris Murphy, Jay Ferguson, Patrick Pentland, and Andrew Scott took the stage, joined by Gregory Macdonald backing them up on, well, everything.

The Haligonian band started off with “Capitol Cooler” and “Live Forever” from their latest release, before weaving through nearly all of their fourteen(!) albums. Going from one of my favourites, “The Other Man” with its moody narrative off Pretty Together, to the incredibly infectious “Ill Placed Trust” from Never Hear the End of It, and the impeccable melody of “Lines You Amend” from One Chord to Another.

In true Sloan fashion, members rotated around and each took lead vocals for their songs, the others joining in excellent harmonies. Murphey even replacing Scott on the drums when he came up to sing songs like “Baxter” (after being serenaded by the audience due to it being his birthday).

They wrapped up the first half of the night with “Unkind” before announcing they’d be back, and after a half hour intermission the band returned (just in time, as the crowd was starting to get antsy) with my highlight from the new album “Dream Destroyer”.

They kept the energy up through the second half of the evening, from raucous songs like “All Used Up” to more laid back “Witch’s Wand”, and the bouncy “The Rest of My Life” which transitioned perfectly into their energetic smash single “Money City Maniacs”, the stage lights turning red and the whole crowd yelling along.

But they still had a few left in them as they were back with the deep cut “Snowsuit Sound” followed by another one of my favourites, the snarky “Underwhelmed” which one again had the sold out room joining in, and then leading into “The Good in Everyone” for a joyous finale.

It was a very fun show, with Sloan proving to fans old and new just why they’ve earned their status over the last three decades. And hopefully I won’t make it another sixteen years before seeing them again!

set two
Dream Destroyer
Congratulations
Fortune Teller
No Damn Fears
I Can’t Sleep
The Dogs
All Used Up
Witch’s Wand
The Rest of My Life
Money City Maniacs
(encore)
Snowsuit Sound
Underwhelmed
The Good in Everyone

set one
Capitol Cooler
Live Forever
Scratch the Surface
Right to Roam
The Other Man
Ill Placed Trust
Baxter
Traces 
Dream It All Over Again
All I Am Is All You're Not
So Far Down
The Lines You Amend
Take It In
Unkind

Ninja Sex Party @ Commodore Ballroom -- June 20, 2025

As their Pure Elegance Tour came to an end, Ninja Sex Party hit the Commodore Ballroom for what was their first(!) show in Vancouver. I’ve followed them on & off over the last few years, but I knew their show would be a real fun time so I was excited to see them, especially as they had TWRP opening for them — a band that I have somehow kept missing live, after randomly seeing them on a street corner in Toronto at 2:30 am at NXNE 2012.

For some reason, the line at the Commodore was still massive an hour after doors (wrapping around past the Orpheum and onto Seymour!) so sadly I missed half of TWRP. The colourfully costumed band from Future Space Canada consisted of Doctor Sung on vocals & keys, Lord Phobos on guitar, bassist Commander Meouch, and drummer Havve Hogan.

They were just launching into the synth rock jam “Synthesise Her” as I got there, catching the last few songs of the set, including the retro flashback to “VHS” and the frenetic “Phantom Racer”. Between each song they had some banter to introduce them, including a running tally of each song they played, conveniently juicing the numbers so they ended the set with song #69 (and also playing one last one, #69-2). They wrapped up the set with “A Human's Touch”, featuring surprise guest vocals from McKenna Rae.

After Ninja Sex Party’s tour manager (I’m guessing) Matt came out to give a few quick rules for the night, the between-set-music turned into an impromptu karaoke with Backstreet Boys & Smash Mouth. Then the lights dimmed and the members of TWRP were back out, soon joined by Ninja Sex Party — Ninja Brian with his usual ninja getup and Danny Sexbang in his spandex and cape.

They started, appropriately enough, with “Get Ready (to Get Ready)” before going into a set that ranged from the sexy “Orgy for One” to the romantic “Heart Boner”. The braggadocious “I Own a Car” to the relatable “Welcome to My Parents’ House”. The 80’s rock inspired comedy songs ran the gamut of emotions, as Danny belted out the tunes with Brian on keys.

Between songs, they would joke and banter, mostly Ninja Brian antagonizing everyone; bugging Danny with a constant barrage of clips of Paul Stanley hyping up a crowd, trolling the members of TWRP with constant handshakes & refusals thereof, and playing with the crowd through those same clips shouting out Toronto (to thunderous boos).

Aside from their own songs, NSP slipped in a few covers, including “The Hit”, one of the first songs they wrote with TWRP. They also touched on some 80’s classics from Dead or Alive, The Cars, and a great version of the sadly-still-relevant “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears.

The main set came to a close (but not before Danny gave the encore concept a wink & nod) with the sci-fi epic “6969”, and after some coaxing from Ninja Brian, everyone was back out for another TWRP collab, “Starlight Brigade”. Finally, they wrapped up the evening with their big hit, the soaring and emotional “Danny Don't You Know?”, the whole room singing and chanting (and crying?) along.

In fact, the crowd was almost constantly singing along throughout the show, cheering & chanting & playing along between songs, with a wave of energy and love pouring to the stage. So much so that it visibly affected Danny (and assumedly Brian too, behind the mask) as he looked genuinely surprised & grateful more than once. Before leaving, he quipped that it may have taken them 17 years to finally make it to Vancouver, but thanks to this crowd, they would be back a lot sooner.

setlist
Get Ready (to Get Ready)
Cool Patrol
Welcome to My Parents' House
The Hit [TWRP cover]
Seatbelts!
I Own a Car
You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) [Dead or Alive cover]
Freak on a Leash [Korn cover]
Heart Boner
Just What I Needed [The Cars cover]
Orgy for One
Everybody Wants to Rule the World [Tears for Fears cover]
6969
(encore)
Starlight Brigade [TWRP cover]
Danny Don't You Know?

Rilo Kiley @ Commodore Ballroom -- May 21, 2025

Whenever the question of ‘bands you wish you could have seen live’ comes up, my immediate answer was always Rilo Kiley. Not only had I missed seeing them before they broke up, I’ve also somehow never seen any of Jenny Lewis’ solo projects (to my shame). So when the Los Angeles group announced their reunion last year for the Sometimes When You’re On You’re Really Fucking On tour, which included a show at the Commodore Ballroom, I was just a little excited.

Unfortunately due to prior commitments, I missed the opener Morgan Nagler, arriving to the sold out Commodore not long before Rilo Kiley hit the stage. Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett, Pierre de Reeder, and Jason Boesel were joined by Harrison Whitford as they kicked off the set to raucous ovation with “The Execution of All Things” and from there spanned all of their albums.

From “Wires and Waves” off their debut Take Offs and Landings, to “Spectacular Views” building to a chaotic finish, and the slinky slow jam “The Moneymaker” from Under the Blacklight, their infectious indie rock full of intricate narratives blasted through the room. Jenny’s voice soared on “I Never”, while Blake took over lead vocals on “Ripchord”, as the band rocked out on songs like “It’s a Hit” (featuring guest trumpet from Orenda Fink) and the heartbreakingly beautiful “Does He Love You?”, Jenny accepted flowers from the front of the stage before the song erupted into a grand finish.

Collectively waiting for this moment for fifteen years, the crowd was locked in all night. People wildly cheered when recognising a song from a single note, I saw lots of hugging & crying around me, with tons of singing along as well; the best example being “With Arms Outstretched” as Lewis handed over the chorus to the audience. I could almost believe them when they gave the standard “this crowd is the best of the tour so far!”

After more singing to “A Better Son/Daughter” — which included the tour’s namesake lyrics — the room somehow came more unglued for “Portions for Foxes”. A favourite of mine (and many others judging by the volume of the punctuating “come here!” in the song) it was incredible to finally see live, as chills crept across my arms and a smile across my face.

That finished off the main set, but with the lights down and interstitial music playing, the band was back soon enough, starting off the encore with the heart wrenching “A Man/Me/Then Jim” once again featuring Fink on trumpet. Morgan Nadler made a quick cameo to provide some dance instructions to “The Frug”, and finally the band sent everyone home with “Pictures of Success”.

Going into a show like this, it’s easy to worry a little. Was I building this up in my head too much? Is this just a cash grab reunion? Questions like that. Thankfully, those were quickly answered with a show that felt simultaneously nostalgic and timeless, Rilo Kiley on top of their game and a crowd hungry for every note. I’m not sure if they have any more planned after the tour (beyond the greatest hits album they have out soon) but if it was just a one off and that was it, it was a hit.

setlist
The Execution of All Things
Wires and Waves
Spectacular Views
The Moneymaker
Dreamworld
I Never
Close Call
Paint’s Peeling
It's a Hit
Does He Love You?
Ripchord
Silver Lining
With Arms Outstretched
A Better Son/Daughter
Portions for Foxes
(encore)
A Man/Me/Then Jim
The Frug
Pictures of Success

Stars @ Commodore Ballroom -- April 17, 2025

Six month ago, Stars stopped by the Vogue Theatre for a sold out show celebrating 20 years of Set Yourself on Fire. During that evening they teased a second round, and low & behold, last night they returned to the Commodore Ballroom for yet another sold out show, celebrating the seminal album.

Fittingly enough, the opening band was the same that opened for them about 20 years ago at Richard’s on Richards, p:ano. The Vancouver group has been on a bit of a hiatus over the last couple decades, but last year they returned for a brand new album, ba ba ba, which made up most of their set. Starting off with “what was i thinking”, Nick Krgovich and Larissa Loyva (aka Kellarissa) switched off on vocals for some chill, indie-pop songs, including the toe-tapping “mariko”, the most rocking of the set “mikey's new house”, and the suburban shoutout to “a bit of coquitlam”.
Unfortunately, their chill vibes and the growing crowd didn’t quite mix as pockets of chatter arose (or maybe I was just in an unlucky spot), but it was a good set otherwise, and I would love to see them again in a more intimate, and attentive, venue.

Not long after that, Stars took the stage; Torquil Campbell, Amy Millan, Evan Cranley, Chris Seligman, Patrick McGee, and Chris McCarron, joined by a sax player. The set started with a full playthrough of the album, the familiar introduction of “When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire” ringing out and the entire crowd singing along to the perennial favourite, “Your Ex-Love Is Dead”. From there, they ran through the timeless collection of songs about love and death, from the bouncy nostalgia of “Reunion” to the pure passion of “What I’m Trying to Say”, and the (sadly) still-relevant “He Lied About Death” which Torquil gave a simple introduction of: don’t fucking vote for nazis. That was followed by the absolutely gorgeous “Celebration Guns”, Amy’s immaculate vocals bringing a tear to the eye as she echoed Torq’s sentiment in her own way.

The album came to a close with a magical moment of the whole room singing along to “Calendar Girl”, but just like last time, they were not done there. The band burst into the favourite, “Hold On When You Get Love And Let Go When You Give It” and dipped their toes into the rest of their discography. From the beautiful “Window Bird”, to the manic “Trap Door”, to “Dead Hearts” which was dedicated to all the ghosts in the room.

The set ended with the classic “Elevator Love Letter” and another huge singalong, but the crowd demanded more, and of course they were back to oblige. They came back to the stage with the intensity cranked for “Take Me To The Riot” before Amy introduced a deep cut they learned so Torquil could sing it to his wife, who was in the crowd, “The Aspidistra Flies”. And finally, they capped off the night with the pure dance tune “No One Is Lose” as a sea of hands shot up into the air when they commanded “Put your hands up if you know you're gonna lose”

As they were wrapping up the Set Yourself on Fire portion of the night, Torquil mentioned that they were incredibly thankful that “for reasons best kept between you and your therapist” this album had resonated with so many people over all these years. I’m very happy that I had the chance to see it played not once, but twice over the last few months. And even though they extended the album’s anniversary tour, the band isn’t resting on that; they’re as fierce as ever, and I can’t wait to hear what’s next.

setlist
Your Ex-Lover Is Dead
Set Yourself on Fire
Ageless Beauty
Reunion
The Big Fight
What I'm Trying to Say
One More Night
Sleep Tonight
The First Five Times
He Lied About Death
Celebration Guns
Soft Revolution
Calendar Girl
Hold On When You Get Love And Let Go When You Give It
Alone
Window Bird
Trap Door
Dead Hearts
Elevator Love Letter
(encore)
Take Me To The Riot
The Aspidistra Flies
No One Is Lost

PHOTOS: Dear Rouge with Gay Nineties @ Commodore Ballroom - April 10 2025

Dear Rouge with Gay Nineties
Commodore Ballroom
April 10 2025

Photos by Christine McAvoy